Theatre promotion

Promo: Departure Lounge at and around Derby Theatre 19th – 22nd July.

In Good Company presents Departure Lounge A summer festival of fresh and exciting performance …now in its sixth year!
Locations in and around Derby Theatre Thursday 19 – Sunday 22 July

Acclaimed performance festival returns…our most accessible yet

(Selected events and productions will be BSL interpreted or captioned and all performance and workshop spaces are wheelchair accessible)

Departure Lounge is celebrating its 6thanniversary, on NEXT WEEK from Thursday 19 until Sunday 22 July, a fantastic summer festival of fresh and thrilling theatre with a bumper line-up of shows, workshops and talks, and a hub for fresh and innovative performance. This year’s Festival will be our most accessible yet, with selected events and productions BSL interpreted and/or captioned (which may benefit Deaf, hard of hearing, blind and partially sighted audience members). All our performance and workshop spaces are also accessible for wheelchair users.

Performance highlights of the Festival for 2018 includes: A Self Help Guide To Being In Love With Jeremy Corbyn by Jess Green and the Mischief Thieves, an award-winning theatre company with a lyrical, powerful and humorous look at modern politics; Major Labia’s Vulva the Revolution, a frank frolic about love, life and labia from East Midlands’ theatre company who delight audiences with their ‘fanny funnies’; Bootworks Theatre Company with The JukeBoxes, two beautiful 1950’s Jukeboxes sit side-by-side – watch them spring to life as two performers (hidden inside) re-create classic pop music videos in a lip-syncing musical medley, performed in the intu shopping centre; Dante or Die’s User Not Found, an In Good Company mid-career commission where audience members are handed a smartphone and a pair of headphones to become a fly-on-the-wall and peer into the life of a man facing the dilemma on whether he should delete his online legacy, a funny story of contemporary grief which gently interrogates our need for connection; Open Wound by Cheeky Chin, a London-based Collective of Theatre Makers from East Asian Origin; I’m Sticking with You by Pebble Gorge, a 15-minute, table-top performance which puts you at the centre and which delivers an experience of some of the feelings that have been running high in the UK since Brexit, a miniature play for ages 7+ written by Tim Crouch.

Stuart Bowden’s When our Molecules Meet Again * Let’s Hope They Remember What to Do, a new show from the internationally acclaimed master of lo-fi, off-beat, music-infused solo storytelling; Fallen Fruit by Total Theatre Award winners Two Destination Language, a story of love, breaking free and Europe where a young girl looks forward to life beyond communism, a couple unravels, and 80s TV permeates everything.

The Eulogy of Toby Peach (Winner of the 2015 IdeasTap Underbelly Award), a discovery of self-mortality in an original piece which explores a true story and the important and difficult subject of being diagnosed with cancer in a refreshing, insightful and humorous way; We Are Ian by In Bed With My Brother, a mad ‘fer it show which transports audiences back to 1989 and into the frenzied world of drugs, beats, bucket hats, acid parties….and throwing two fingers up to Thatcher!

Fever Dream’s Wrecked, a gripping piece of site-specific theatre (in the Derby Theatre car park) where audience members are invited into a stolen car seconds after it has crashed, a powerful, intense and individual show experiencing the aftermath of a car accident.

On the Friday of the Festival there will be Represent, a Women of Colour showcase which includes: Priya Mystery’s Tropical Awkward Bastard, a bold provocative rant about being misrepresented in the world, while ticking all the right boxes, which involves a pineapple, a bunch of bananas, a tropical juice carton, one sharp cleaver and a tutu; MENTAL by Lauren Whitter, a physical piece of theatre with elements of puppetry and spoken word exploring real issues, such as suicide and race and where the artist wants to eliminate the stigma surrounding mental health; Mia Johnson’s Pink Lemonade, a partly autobiographical multi-disciplinary piece of theatre which explores female masculinity and lesbianism inspired by the rebellious butches of the early 20th century and beyond; and Michelle Vacciana, Nottingham-based theatre and film maker with She Came from Inner Space.

Workshop, discussion and participatory highlights for Departure Lounge 2018 include: On the Friday of the Festival, we will see the return of the ever-popular panel discussion which, for this year, will focus on Leadership in the Arts. Practitioners, artists and audiences come together for a fascinating and insightful discussion with leaders from a range of inspirational arts organisations in the UK. Chairing the discussion will be British freelance theatre critic, journalist and blogger, Matt Trueman.

The panel of provocateurs will include: Kwame Kwei-Armah, Artistic Director of London’s Young Vic, British actor, playwright, director, singer and broadcaster; Jenny Sealey, Artistic Director of highly acclaimed theatre company Graeae, a force for change in world-class theatre, who boldly place D/deaf and disabled actors centre stage and challenge preconceptions; and Natalie Ibu, Artistic Director of British African theatre company, Tiata Fahodzi, whose aim is to generate a richer, more multiple mainstream theatre culture by championing stories that illuminate the mixed, multiple experience of what it is to be of African heritage in Britain today.

Other workshops, discussion and participatory events include: a Networking Lunch, an opportunity for artists and Festival-goers to chat and connect over food; I Dare You rehearsed reading, a piece about family, trauma, suitcases of worms and a sofa that has seen everything; an Open Mic session, a Dante or Die Workshop, a 90-minute introduction to site-based theatre-making for professional theatre-makers or non-professionals with theatre experience to experience some of Dante or Die’s methods for creating site-based work, including improvisation exercises, devising techniques and relationship to audience; Eat, Meet & Greet, 1-2-1 sessions with key staff from Arts Council England and In Good Company partner venues; LaPelles The Night Shift, a very special creative allnighter which is part workshop, part performance-making-free-for-all, a 12-hour theatrical lock-in for anyone interested in rapid-response theatre-making and staying up really, really late and Stacy Makishi: Killing Time Workshop, a physical workshop that welcomes anyone who is curious about live art and performance which will galvanizes participants to: create faster than critique, resist resistance and pulverize procrastination.

Ben Anderson (Creative Producer, In Good Company) said: “Departure Lounge continues to challenge, inspire and entertain audiences and artists alike. We have a hugely diverse programme on offer once again this year which will animate every corner of Derby Theatre and beyond, as we branch out into the Intu Centre for the first time. We’ve also got our regular mix of the best of the East Midlands blended with the UK’s most exciting artists, international artists, sharing works-in-progress, performances in cafés and cars, immersive and intimate performances, touring work and Edinburgh previews. I am thrilled that this year’s Festival will be our most accessible yet.

Departure Lounge exists to present theatre of the most radical nature right in the heart of the country; proving that the Midlands is a vibrant place to shape the future of theatre.”

ACCESS INFORMATION FOR THE FESTIVAL
Departure Lounge welcomes all customers and we are working hard to make as much of the Festival as we can accessible to as many people as possible – including the following events with captioning or BSL options:

The Difference Engine is a portable tool which puts access into people’s pockets – sending captions and/or audio description to audience members’ mobile devices (smart phones/tablets) via the Difference Engine app – WHICH IS available to download from all Apple and Android Devices at: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/the-differenceengine/id1198229634?mt=8.

Ushers will be on hand to help connect audience members requiring this service on the day/night and downloading the app in advance is highly recommended.

Wheelchair Access All our performance and workshop spaces are accessible and if you are a wheelchair user, a dedicated member of our cabin crew will be able to guide you through our access routes. This service is available on the day of performance but we recommend emailing tickets@derbytheatre.co.uk before you visit and we will send you venue maps and information in advance.

Ushers will be on hand on the day/night but please do allow extra time to arrive and gain access to the areas where your selected performances/workshops will take place
PLEASE LET US KNOW IN ADVANCE… For audience members requiring any access provision, we highly recommend them contacting Box Office in advance at tickets@derbytheatre.co.uk or calling the Box Office on 01332 593939 so that we are prepared to provide you with the best experience possible.

PRICES
Weekend Festival Pass (Thu – Sun) £80 (saving £50 per person) Includes all performances and events during this period

Festival Full Day Pass (Fri and Sat only) £35 (saving £13 per person) Includes all performances and events during this period

Individual performances and events Range from FREE – £9 £9 each for the following shows:

£7 each for the following workshops: £5 for work-in-progress pieces, £5 for each of the following events:
Free for the following events: Leadership in the Arts Panel Discussion Networking Lunch Eat, Greet & Meet Rehearsed Reading